Age 97
A nurse, educator, healthcare leader and writer, Sister Elizabeth Mary followed in the footsteps of her nurse aunt Sister Mary LaSalette Ruddy when she entered the Sisters of Mercy in Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 19.
Elizabeth Mary received a diploma in nursing from St. Joseph Mercy School of Nursing, Sioux City, Iowa, a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Mercy College in Detroit, Michigan, a master’s degree in nursing administration from Wayne State University, Detroit, and a doctorate in nursing education from Columbia University in New York, New York.
She quickly became a nursing supervisor at Mercy Medical Center in Dubuque, Iowa, and then at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Sioux City, Iowa, where she later became director of the school of nursing. For 10 years, she chaired the nursing department at Mercy College of Detroit. She also served on the leadership team of the Province of Detroit for two terms.
As director of health services for the Sisters of Mercy, Province of Detroit, Elizabeth Mary was instrumental in developing the proposal for the Sisters of Mercy Health Corporation. She ministered for a decade as the president and chief executive officer of Marian Health Center in Sioux City, Iowa.
As a poet and writer, Sister Elizabeth Mary authored the obituaries of the Detroit/Iowa Sisters for more than two decades and, in her 90’s, published three articles in the National Catholic Reporter. A woman of great faith who loved life, Liz enjoyed reading, writing, playing cards and entertaining friends with her cooking. Her motto, All for Thee for Mary, inspired her and reminded her of her commitment of love and faith.